“In my view, the controversial plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda, which was approved by the Westminster parliament yesterday with 320 votes in favour and 276 against, shows just how immoral, inhumane and ruthless this government’s approach to migration is, as the Catholic and Anglican bishops have repeatedly denounced. There is, however, a positive side to yesterday’s vote. The Prime Minister has succeeded in preventing the new law from deliberately violating international human rights law, as the extreme wing of the Tory party had hoped, and has made it clear that he wants the UK to remain within the jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights.” Clifford Longley, renowned Catholic commentator, advisor to the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales and contributor to the weekly Tablet, comments on the House of Commons vote which gave the green light to Rishi Sunak’s Conservative government’s ‘Rwanda Plan’.
The plan was first proposed by the British government in April 2022. Under the terms of the arrangement, the African country was to take in thousands of asylum seekers the British government deemed ‘illegal’, for an indefinite period of time, in exchange for money (a reported £120 million deal). However, nobody has been sent to Rwanda under the scheme. In short, the plan was never implemented because the British judiciary and the European Court of Human Rights have consistently upheld the legal appeals of charities representing asylum seekers, and ruled that the British government was violating their human rights. This situation could well continue in the coming months, thwarting attempts by Rishi Sunak’s government to deport the asylum seekers.
“The government assumes that the threat of deportation to Rwanda will deter the tens of thousands of asylum seekers who try to cross the English Channel every week. It clearly won’t work because these people are desperate to reach our country, where many of their relatives live, and they certainly don’t read our newspapers,” pointed out Clifford Longley.
The commentator went on to explain that “although the British government has agreed to provide training for 150 judges to process appeals from asylum seekers destined for Rwanda, the same judges may still stop the deportations.” “As the High Court ruled last November, the African country is not a safe destination and asylum seekers could be sent back to their country of origin, where they could face torture and persecution. Not to mention the fact that the ‘Rwanda Bill’ passed by the House of Commons will have to pass the scrutiny of the House of Lords in the coming weeks, which is opposed to this very migration policy and will slow down the implementation of the bill by proposing amendments and sending it back to the House of Commons,” the commentator concluded.
